Roswell: One and All
by Rina Ena
Summary: It's been one year since Max and co went on the run, they have eluded their enemies for most of this time, but now the Dupes and a government agency called Council 8 are closing in on them. Now our reluctant heros must stand and fight together. CC for now
1. Chapter 1

Part One:

It's been one year since they began running, always trying desperately to stay one step head of their enemies. A beat up old black van drives down the interstate, around them lush green trees tower over them, the sunlight peeking through the canopies. Liz sits in the passenger seat marveling at the beauty they are surrounded by; she turns back to Maria. "Hey Maria?" she calls out. Maria however is crashed out, her face digging into Kyle's shoulder. Liz isn't quite sure if Kyle is meditating or sleeping, she turns back in her seat.

Max looks over to Liz. "What is it?" He smiles at her trying to encourage her to share her thoughts with him.

Liz shrugs. "It's nothing." She readjusts herself in her seat. "How much longer are we going to drive?"

Isabel leans forward. "We should camp. The weather is perfect, and—oooh, hey, look." She points to a sign advertising Macie Lamas, Lake Tahoe's number one realtor. A woman about 38 smiles brightly, her long red hair and brown eyes reflecting a kind of over friendliness you only get from someone in sales. Michael pokes his head out over Liz's and sees the billboard just as Max drives by. "We can camp like rich people!"

"What do we need a realtor for?" Michael grouses.

Liz hands Isabel a piece of paper with the number from the billboard. "It said she also has vacations homes listed." Isabel smiles and reaches for her cell phone.

Max pulls the van over. "You both know we can't stay here. We need to stay below the radar at all cost. We can't risk drawing any attention to us."

"Like we did in Twin Falls?" Michael snarks.

"Are you trying to blame me for what went down?" Max faces him, Michael stares at him defiantly. Michael looks over to Maria who is still knocked out; he looks back over to Max.

"I don't think a week will hurt Maximillian." Michael shrugs. "For whatever my opinion is worth anyway." Michael gets out of the van. "I'm going to stretch my legs."

Kyle wakes up and gently nudges Maria off him. "Pee break again?" He slides out of the van; stretching as he looks around and turns back to the van. "There are no bathrooms."

"Max, we can stay for one week. After what happened, we all need a break. I'm not saying what happened is your fault or Michaels, or anyone else's. I'm just sick of take-out and cheap diner food. I want a home cooked meal, and clean sheets that don't smell of cigarettes and borax soap. I want just a taste of normalcy." Liz touches Max's arm, looking at him, her eyes pleading.

"I slept through something important didn't I? What are you guys talking about? Where are we?" Kyle looks between Max, Liz, and Isabel for his answers.

"Apparently," Max begins slowly, "we are going to be staying in Lake Tahoe for week."

Liz leans across the armrest and kisses Max. "Thank you." Izzie hops out of the van and begins dialing Macie's number.

"Whoa, wait really? No van for a week?!" Kyle slaps hand on the side of the van door. "I'll go tell Michael." Maria sits up startled as Kyle walks away.

"Is it my turn to drive?" Maria fixes her ponytail.

"No. We're going to take a break from the road. One week, a vacation house…maybe I dunno where yet. Izzie's on the phone setting it up right now.

"Oh my god!" Maria smiles. "Thank you, Liz Parker for whatever magic you've worked on

your hubby." She laughs and sits back, a thought enters her mind and she sits back up.

"Are we sure we weren't followed?"

Max looks at her. "Only as sure as we normally are." He offers her a sad apologetic smile. Even though Max knows they all made their own choice to runaway, to live this life, he could never shake the feeling if he faced the truth, he had made the choice for all of them years ago when he saved Liz. Everything they had survived, or in the case of Alex, didn't survive, can be traced back to that day. He would die to protect anyone of them, even Kyle, but right now he only had to pretend safety was possible. So Max grinned. "We're safe Maria. I zigged, I zagged, and I looped right and left. By the time the agency finds us, our week of peace will have come and gone. Okay?"

Maria smiles and nods. Liz squeezes Max's hand and mouths "Love you".

Part 2:

"She said she would be waiting at the house so we need to come up with the cash, ASAP." Isabel counting the money they have left unfolds a ten dollar bill. "Okay Kyle Max and Maria go get the food" She hands Max a wad of ones waving her hand over it and converting them to 50's. "Michael and Liz, we're going to need a temporary car to get around in. A van is a bit too conspicuous even for the woods."

"Up for a little grand theft auto Liz?" Michael smirks.

"As always." They exit the van.

"So we'll take the new car up to the house. Did I give you the address?" Izzie waits for Max to nod his affirmative before continuing. "Okay good. So you guys get the food and bring the van up to the house. Macie said it had a garage, so we'll store the van there. Everyone good?"

The crew nods, Kyle and Maria head into the supermarket.

"I'll be right in." Max calls out, he looks back at Isabel. "You sure you don't want me to go with you?"

"Yes. We got this." She waves her hand over her purse changing the stylish but non-descript black leather into a gorgeous cream Dolce and Gabana." Max rolls his eyes, Izzie shrugs. "Hey, I got to look like a trust fund girl." Liz holds out her five dollar sunglasses. "Gucci please." She smiles as Izzie starts transforming her into a preppy Hilton crossover. Michael grunts as he looks around the parking lot of the Safeway.

"Should we go hybrid this time?" He makes his way toward the back of the lot.

"Yes how cute and so 'in'." Liz turns and scans the parking lot. "I mean I'm all for saving the planet but we need something to carry us all around. So can we make it look more like that?" She points to a large black SUV. "Hybrid with leg room is all I'm saying."

Izzie begins converting her one dollar bills into hundreds. "Don't forget the Tabasco. Oh and get ice cream too!"

Max heads into the supermarket.

Part 3:

Macie Lamas practically jumps over the couch to open the door. When she got the call just before noon asking about the Reynolds home she nearly peed from joy. Macie has a perfect sales record this side of the lake; if you have a home to be sold or rented she was the go to lady. The Reynolds home had begun to change that; she could not for the life of her get it rented out. Not because what it looked like or the location. It was a gorgeous house; a three story home with a breath taking view from the roof. Fully furnished, just recently updated with top of the line electronics, the kitchen hand been remodeled as well. The location was perfect; the walk to Zephyr Cove was less than a block away. The problem with renting the house is that the Reynolds were asking for an exorbitant amount. They wanted $7,000.00 for the week, and they weren't willing to negotiate on that amount at all. Stubborn people, fools trying to get that much money during the off season.

Just as she reaches the foyer the doorbell rang again. Fixing her best smile on her face she takes a breathe and opens the door. Her smile falters ever so slightly as she takes in the three people standing before her. They could barely be out of there teens, how could they possible afford this house. Macie tightens her smile.

"Can I help you?"

"Honey with the money we're about to spend you better be able to help us." Michael using a slight east coast accent cocks his head to the side and winks at Macie.

Macie grimaces slightly and looks the three strangers up and down; she notices they aren't wearing Target. They are decked out in designer head to toe. She looks back to Michael dark hair slicked into a faux hawk. _Oh my god they must be like Disney celebutants!_ Macie's smile spreads across her face again.

"Well hello there!" She opens the door wider for them. "Please come in!"

The trio enter and look around the foyer. Liz begins to bounce slight in excitement. Izzie nods her approval. Michael looks bored until he peeks into the living room and sees the 40" plasma mounted to the wall. Macie notices his reaction.

"I'm Macie Lamas, and one of you must be Chyler Penprase."

"That's me. This is my friend, Natalia and her brother Hugh." Izzie points to the living room. "Wow." She walks into the living room.

"They just upgraded everything. I'm sure Hugh will be happy with the size of the flat screen-"

Michael shrugs. "Is there a Playstation?"

Part 4:

Agent Brenton sits at his nondescript desk in his nondescript office reading the report from the surviving agents on the scene in Twin Falls. He wasn't sure what to make of it really, from as far as he could tell two of the three surviving agents were claiming that Liz Parker and Isabel Evans had not only spared their lives but had also protected the wounded men from the others' attacks. Agent Brenton pulls out his cell phone and punches in a series of numbers. "I think it's time we've had that talk you've been looking for." He ends the call and picks up the file.

Sitting back in his chair he looks at the stills from the surveillance camera. The Evans' girl had used her powers to create a shield while the Parker girl shot what looked like electricity out of her hands into the one of the Michaels. Apparently since the last report was filed Mr. Guerin had developed the ability to clone himself. A power that could be very dangerous as far as Council 8 was concerned.

"What to do?" He sighs as he pulls a cigarette from a hidden pack in his desk.

Part 5:

Kyle stands staring at a box of Frosted Flakes. He looks over to a box of Apple Jacks. Maria and Max stand together watching him.

"You can't speed this up Kyle? Maybe you should get the variety pack? I mean, it has them all you know." Maria puts a hand on her hip, sighing in exasperation.

"We can afford to get both." Max offers.

"Just give me a minute. I feel the decision coming soon." Kyle's hand moves over to the Apple Jacks and hovers unsure about his selection.

"Oh jeez." Maria maneuvers the basket down the aisle. "We're moving on join us at your leisure." Max follows Maria into the Bread and Pastries aisle.

"Should we get stuff for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?" Max scans the selection before him.

"Why didn't you let Liz kill the dupe?" Maria covers her mouth briefly; she locks her eyes on Max. "Rath was trying to kill us, he almost killed me, and you stopped her. Why?"

Max looks around. "Can we talk about this later?" He smiles politely as a stock boy rushes past with a leaking carton of juice. Maria crosses her arms.

"I just want to know what you were thinking. We had a chance to permanently end one of our enemies. We could have had one less person we needed to look over our shoulders for. I don't get it Max."

"If she had killed Rath, who would have kept those agents from following us again? They wouldn't have fought each other; they just would have come after us. If she killed someone, even Rath, she would change forever. More than she—than all of us have already had to this last year, and I'm not ready for that just yet." Max turns back to the peanut butter; Kyle joins them with the box of Apple Jacks.

"Hey Izzie called, they got the house, apparently it's awesome." He smiles as he drops the cereal into the cart. He notices the silence between Max and Marian. "She wants to make a roast for dinner so…" He trails off. "What happened?"

"Nothing," Maria lies, "Max can't decide between smooth, chucky, or swirl."

Part 6:

In a small motel just outside of the city of Twin Falls, a young boy plays outside his family's room. He wrestles his action figures against each other, waging a battle between good and evil. "Die, die, die." He growls twisting and mashing the dolls together in. He throws one of his action figures against the door beside his family's room. He moves to pick up the doll when the door opens suddenly.

"Hey kid, keep it down will ya? Jeez." The kid looks at the beat up man before him. Rath's left eye is swollen shut, his lip is busted and bleeding, there are various scrapes and bruises over the his face and torso. "Are you deaf or something?" He kicks the action figure away from his door and slams it shut. The kid quickly grabs his dolls and rushes back into his family's room.

Lonnie lies in the bed. "Oh that was necessary, you tryin' to draw more attention to us? Maybe hopin' for the suits to come and kick your ass some more?" She sits up. "This is stupid why the hell are we waitin here, when we could be out there trying to find Max and his crew and finish them off?"

"Shut it will ya?" He stares at his reflection, he places his hand over his lip and focus's trying to heal himself, nothing happens. "Maybe if you heal me, we can move on faster?"

Lonnie walks over to him; she puts her hand up to his lip, and then steps away. Rath checks out his lip in the mirror. "Nice." He turns back to Lonnie who punches him, busting his lip again. "What the hell was that for you stupid—"

"Maybe next time you will think twice before running into a situation without a little bit of planning first. Maybe next time you will remember that our only way off this damn planet is to kill Max and little back up dancers." She grabs her jacket off the bed. "I'm going out, when I get back we are going after Max, whether you are healed or not." She slams the door and storms off.


	2. Chapter 2

**Remember Not To Panic**

**Part One**

"Are you kidding me?" Maria stares in awe at the kitchen, turning to the living room. "Oh-oh geez!" She drops the bags of groceries she is carrying onto the counter and goes into the living room. Michael turns off the TV as she walks over to the piano. He watches her quietly as she runs her fingers over the ivory keys, hearing the music without playing a note.

Isabel rolls her eyes as she watches Maria. She heads down into the garage. "Need help?" She holds the door open for Kyle who is juggling three bags.

"We have enough food for a small country." He smiles. "How's the house?"

"Gorgeous." She takes the grocery bags Max hands her.

"I'll grab the rest and lock up here. You guys head up, I'll be right there." Max goes back to the car. Kyle and Izzie exchange a look as they head inside.

"What happened to him?" Izzie follows Kyle back up into the kitchen.

"I think him and Maria got into it about what went down in Twin Falls." Kyle places his bags on the counter and takes the others from Izzie. "It was tense, but you know, we got three kinds of peanut butter out of it, so there is an upside." He cracks a grin. "So, are you going to give me the grand tour or what? I got my own room right? I think a little 'me' time has been earned." He laughs as Izzie pushes him playfully. "What? I'm a guy with little prospects of feminine assistance in the matter. Least I'm being honest and optimistic about it."

"Pathetic." She laughs leads the way upstairs. "We'll start on the roof. The view is to die for."

Maria looks over to Michael almost startled that he's there, a hint of a smile touches her lips, and her face flushes red. "Hey." Michael stares at her, he grins seeing the flush creep up from her neck.

"Play me something." He clears his throat gently. "Please."

Maria sits in front of the piano. She plays with the keys for few seconds; Michael walks over and sits next to her, his eyes on her lips as she begins to sing:

_Tears in my eyes love_

_You know how I feel._

_Together in this insanity_

_Please don't leave me standing alone._

Liz sits in a darkened room crying. She wipes her tears away with the back of her hand. _Get a grip Liz. Nothing has changed. Max must've known what he was doing. _Fresh tears crowd her eyes forcing themselves forward. Kyle's laughter startles her out of the consuming ache. She rushes into the adjoining bathroom and turns the shower on; she grabs a towel and covers her face, muffling her cries.

Downstairs, Max enters the kitchen, "Hey maybe we shouldn't—" He looks around, nobody but Michael and Maria making music. Max smiles as he heads upstairs. _We all need the break, as long as we stay on our toes, we'll be fine._ Maria begins to giggle as Michael trails kisses along the side of her neck.

**Part Two**

Lucky Lou's Gas and Market has been around since 1963. It says so on the sign. Rath could care less about the history of this rinky-dink pit stop. His body hurt, his head pounded, and still Lonnie made him drive. _The bitch thinks she can treat me like I'm one of her slaves. I'll have to teach her not to underestimate me. I would have had everything under control. The damn Parker girl has powers, who saw that coming? _He looks at his face in the rearview mirror. Though still bruised he has managed to heal himself enough to open his eye fully. _She could have killed me. She would have killed me if Max hadn't—_

_I could have handled it. Why does everyone think I can't take care of myself?! _He slams his hands on the steering wheel and glares at Lonnie through the store's glass window.

Inside the store, Lonnie leans over the counter, an innocent glint in her eyes. "So you know you saw them," she smiles at the young man with the name tag BRENT, "you just aren't sure when?" Brent nods as he stares at Lonnie draped over his counter.

"I heard them talking about, uh, needing to keep driving. It seemed important and then the girl…uh her." He points to Liz in the picture Lonnie has in her hands.

"You mean my sister?" Lonnie blinks coyly at him, Brent nods.

"Yeah, she came in and got into a fight with this kid," Brent points to Max. "I don't know about what though, they, uh, went outside." He lips his lips nervously. Lonnie moves around the counter.

"Are you sure you can't remember any other details?" Lonnie sidles up next to Brent. "Does my being this close make you nervous?" She leans closer and whispers in his ear "You're practically shaking? Are you scared?"

"Yes-NO! I just…customers aren't supposed to be behind the counter. And you-you are, so..." His eyes cross when Lonnie nibbles on his ear.

"I'm just so grateful for the information you've given me. I'm so worried for my sister." She kisses his cheek. Brent relaxes, starting to feel like the hero.

"Well I wish there was more that I could remember." He turns his face slightly hoping for a kiss.

Lonnie pulls away slightly, teasing him. "We'll your little human brain can only be expected to do so much." As she pulls him into a kiss her fingertips dip slightly into his brain; small waves of energy transfer between Brent and Lonnie. Energy and light begin to surround Brent, his eyes fly open and he tries to pull away but can't.

Everything goes white.

**Part Three**

"I didn't expect to be hearin' from ya so soon Charlie. I'm not complain' or anything just saying." A wide smile spread across the face of Sheriff Jim Valenti. "I'm assuming this is in regards to my son and his friends." He crosses his arms as he leans back on his truck.

"They were involved in an incident that left some of my agents dead Jim. This isn't a social call." Charlie Brenton lifts his hat wiping the sweat from his brow. Jim sets a serious expression on his face; he sets it in stone never betraying the emotions he is suddenly filled with...

"Did they all escape? I mean are they—" Jim stammers briefly before Agent Brenton begins to speak again.

"As far as we can tell they all made it out okay. In fact what happened that night have a lot to do with why I'm here." Agent Brenton has never been the kind of man to play cloak and dagger, he has always put what he wanted to say out there, lay out the facts and give the person he was speaking with the chance to do the right thing. He would tell you this is his best quality; it made him a fair man. And if the person he was talking with made the wrong choice, well a fair man won't lose sleep over having to shoot a lying dirty bastard. "I want you to set up a meeting with the parents. I have a one time only proposition, and it's got a shelf life of 12 hours."

**PART FOUR:**

Michael mans the barbecue as Maria hands out virgin margaritas to everyone. Kyle waves her off and opens a beer. "I still have my fake I.D." He raises his Corona to Max. "The gift that keeps on giving, thank you very much."

Izzie messes with the radio, Liz comes over with a stack of CD's. "I found them in the game room, they have like everything." Liz hands Iz the stack and walks over to Max, taking a drink from Maria on the way. "Hey." She looks out at the beautiful sun set, a sliver over fiery orange just over the horizon. "I could stay here from ever." Smiling she looks at Max, though she expects to see him in agreement, she is sadly not surprises to see concern and doubt etched onto his face.

"Liz, we can't." Max pulls her into his arms. Briefly the tears crowd her eyes, but she blinks them away. She looks up at her husband.

"I know. It won't ever be safe enough. I get that, but I can think it Max. I can want it."

"It makes it harder to keep moving if you let yourself dwell on it Liz." Max kisses her forehead. "I want it to Liz. Normal isn't a foreign concept to me, a distant memory maybe," Liz looks up and smiles, "we'll find a way, someday to settle down. We just have to keep ahead of everyone coming after us." Max leans down his palm on Liz's cheek. "I love you madly Liz Parker-Evans." He kisses her gently.

Izzie watches the exchange and swallows the lump in her throat. Kyle comes up behind her. "Hey Ms. DJ. You suck. Color Me Badd? Eh. I'm confiscating your cool card." Iz turns to him.

"Hey! It's not like we have such a wide variety."

"We have the internet right? I've read it's possible to download music, burn them on a CD and then not suck as the DJ. It could all be a lie though." He laughs and heads inside. "I'm going to save this night from the Music Now 1992 catalog." Iz looks at Michael and Maria bickering playfully over the food, and follows Kyle inside.

"I know how to cook. I was a chef you know." He playfully slaps Maria's hands from the tongs.

"You were a short order cook and you never cooked an order right. We were always bringing back screwed up orders." Maria reaches for the tongs again; Michael slaps her hand away again.

"No playing near the fire children." Liz leaning on Max watches as Michael and Maria playfully fight with each other. "Mmm, maybe you should go and take over the grill. I don't want burnt steak on my first home cooked meal in a year." Max pulls her over, he picks up the tongs.

**Part Five**

Amy Deluca was the last to arrive; she stumbled into the back room of the Crash Down. "What happened? Did someone hear from them? Are they okay?" Nancy Parker walks over to her.

"We've haven't heard anything. Jim called us this afternoon, said he needed us all together. I didn't mean to give you the impression that we've spoken to them."

"So still nothing from them." She rubs her forehead. "God, I feared the worst. I mean they say 'no news is good news' but that's just stupid. No news means I get to think the worst and the worst is very possible because I have no other news to offset this panic." Her face is red as the panic begins to rise. "I just, I'm sorry." Nancy smiles sympathetically, and ushers her to a seat next to Diane.

"We're the 'Out of Our Minds' club." Diane smiles warmly, but the fear in her eyes betraying her calm demeanor.

"Ha! 'OOOM'," Amy snorts, "like I could reach a level of calm by moaning right now." The ladies begin to laugh, Jeff smiles and shakes his head.

Everyday when he woke up he thought of Liz. He thought about the pure terror he felt when they brought her home from the hospital after she was born, he thought about the pure terror he felt on her first day of school, he was worried she was growing up too fast, he was worried someone would hurt her feelings and he wouldn't be there to make it all better. Ever since she started hang around Max, that sense of terror has increased gradually, it reached it's peak a little over a year ago, when Liz and everyone has ran away, and all he had in the way of an explanation was a journal she had kept. With being able to explain it, he believed every word she had written. It had taken Amy a little longer to come around, but he never doubted the reality his daughter has lived since the day Max had saved her life. Liz was out there running for her life, and he could talk to her, hold her, or try to make it okay.

"Jim's late." Phillip checked his watch again. "He said he would be here at 10:15 right?"

"I'll call him." Jesse reached for his cell phone as was about to dial with Agent Brenton walks into the back room.

"Can I help you?" Jeff stands though his knees are weak. Jim slips past Agent Brenton and Jeff relaxes.

"Who's he?" Amy stands fire in her eyes. "How many times and how many ways do we have to tell you we don't know anything? Huh?"

"Wait. Amy let me explain okay?" Jim takes off his hat. "I contacted Agent Brenton six months ago, he's a friend okay? His father and I worked together for a long time, Charlie is a good kid, I obviously trust him if I was willing to bring you all in on this."

"In on what exactly?" Jesse speaks up, he crosses his arms defiantly. "If he works for the government then he is after Isabel, Max, all of them. How can we trust anything he has to say?" The defiance turns to defense as he shifts his balance waiting for a response.

"I came here to make you an offer. We've recently come into to evidence." He pulls flash drive from his pocket. "We have proof of their capabilities; a video of an exchange between your children and some of my agents. There is clearly a third party involvement which we can possibly discuss further, however right now I am only cleared to make you an offer." He hands Jim the flash drive, Jim opens the laptop he was instructed to bring. "I'm putting my cards on the table, I've read the files on your children and they are all good kids, but the secrets they carry will catch up to them. Watch the video, I will be back." He nods to Jim as he leaves the room.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for the Memories**

**Part 1- Six days ago**

Just outside Twin Falls the crisp midnight air is rich with moisture, the remaining puddles from the days showers are disrupted violently by the tires of a beat up VW van. The faded paint a sad reminder of the vibrant lime color it once was. The driver lowers the window, letting the fresh air in.

"I swear to God Kyle, you are banned from burritos." Isabel's eyes are watering. "It smells like something died. Twice."

Kyle laughs as he lowers his window. "I'm so sorry I swear. I'm not doing it on purpose." He grabs his stomach. "I think I might need Max to heal me if this keeps up."

"That is gross."

"Geez. Did you run over a skunk Iz?" Max sits forwards; he looks over to Kyle and shakes his head slightly. "We should stop at the next hotel. I think it's we could get two days out of this place."

Iz passes a grey sedan on the left. "How much money do we have left? I mean are we talking a Holiday Inn or a shady place where the sheets are cleaned-_"_

"Monthly." Kyle interjects and high fives Iz.

"And the bed may or may not-" Iz starts.

"Oh, they definitely do." Kyle comments.

"Have bed bugs and lice and whatever else—" Iz continues, exchanging a look of agreement with

Kyle.

"We can stay at a Holiday Inn." Max sits back with Liz.

Kyle and Isabel share a victory nod as Iz accelerates the old tired van.

Iz walks into the hotel room, flicking the lights on. "Oooh a tub!" She smiles in delight. "Oh! A coffee pot."

"We drink coffee all the time." Kyle drops their bags on the bed. "One bed again." He flops back on the bed and reaches for the phone.

"Call for more pillows." Isabel yells from the bathroom where she smells the complimentary soaps and shampoos.

"Yeah. Already on it." He dials "0". Isabel comes out of the bathroom and pulls her duffle bag onto the bed. "Hi yeah this is room 227 I need two more pillows and extra towels please." Kyle listens for a few seconds. "Okay thanks." He sits up. "They will be here in 10 minutes." He looks around.

"I am seriously dying for a bath." Iz pulls her beauty bag free; Kyle quickly pulls it from her hand.

"You promised Iz." He gives her a knowing look, she puts her hands on her hips.

"I never promised, I—" She reaches for her bag. "Fine but I'm going to take a bath while we do it."

Kyle grins and kicks off his shoes. "Awesome."

PART 2:

Agent Jacob Carter rides in the back of a large van he speaks quietly to on his headset. "This is a rare opportunity sir. We can end this all tonight." Carter listens nodding along with what the person is saying. "I will update you in a half hour sir."

He looks over to the group of men and women in tactical gear. "All right, the op has been given the go head." The group nods its understanding. "I'm sure you all are aware that we have been after the subjects for quite some time. It is _imperative _that we do not screw this up. We picked up their trail in Pocatello and have followed them to Twin Falls. I am going to say this one time so listen up. There is no kill order, you will stun and subdue the subjects, but be clear that we need them alive." He stares at them all making his point clear. "The location is public, we have already arranged to have the floors they are on, the one above it and below it will be cleared. Agent Gabby Bosco will head up this task force. Good luck." Agent Carter opens the back door as the van rolls to a stop in front of the Holiday Inn. He spots the faded VW van. He adjusts his tie and feels for his weapon in his holster and heads inside.

**Part Three:**

Rath watches Carter from his hotel room. "The suits tracked them too. Damn, it'd be nice to have Ava around right now. We're going to need a distraction to get to them without a big brouhaha."

"No way did I hear you just say 'brouhaha'? You really need to chill out Rath. The suits don't have a clue about what they are about to step into." Lonnie stands in front of a mirror comparing her reflection to a picture of Isabel.

"You know I'm the one having to stick my neck out tonight. Excuse me for being a little amped up. Are you sure your going to be able to get into their minds?"

"Yeah there's nothing to it." Lonnie changes her nails, lengthening them and removing the black nail polish.

"What's plan 'B'?" Rath crosses his arms watching her as the transformation really kicks off.

"Oh geez, calm down it's going to work okay?" Lonnie rolls her eyes. "I just need to be able to squash any doubt your Michael long enough for you to kill them both." She waves a hand over her short spiky hair colored with strands of purple and dark blue, as the hair lengthens, the colors fade as a vibrant golden hue takes over. "As for Ava, she wasn't always on our side. In fact seeing as how she was never really on our side, I think it's a safe bet that she would be helping Max and his little crew tonight." She changes her make-up to a much more natural tone. "For that last point I feel no guilt is saying this, I'm glad Nicholas killed that spineless bitch." She smiles and it's Isabel looking at Rath. "Your turn."

PART FOUR:

Inside the bathroom the mirrors are steamed white, the lights dim as Isabel waves her right hand. She takes in the peace of the moment. She closes her eyes and pulls the bubbles higher around her, inhaling the floral fragrance. She smiles in the peacefulness of it all.

"READY?" Kyle hollers from the bedroom. Isabel opens her eyes and a mixture of anger and annoyance flash across her face. "Hey Isabel are you ready?"

"YES! Yes, I'm ready. Geez." Isbael begins to concentrate.

In the bedroom, Kyle lounges on the bed, his hands behind his head. He begins to think of the park his dad used to take him too, he thinks of his dad and he begins to remember the last conversation they had. As he begins to hear his father's voice the scenery changes to the living room, Jim sitting across from him tears stinging his eyes.

_It seems cruel that I would have to lose my son forever—_

The scene turns black and Kyle finds himself in a room with glass walls. Stars shine brightly all around him. He hears a splash and turns to see Isabel still in her bath watching him.

"Kyle, you know we can't do that." There is no annoyance only compassion. "If we re-live the memories together we risk inadvertently communicating with him. It's too dangerous for that."

"It's his birthday. I can't really think of anything else right now Iz." Kyle shrugs and looks around. "What is this place?"

"I dunno. It just kinds of came to me." Iz sinks lower beneath the bubbles. "Come on, you don't have forever, the water's going to get cold soon."

Kyle stands in awe of the universe surrounding him. He tilts his head slightly as a thought forms. "Maybe this is a place from your memory. From Valandra's memory or something." There is a knocking sound. "Whoa, it's like God is knocking." Kyle feels long the clear walls. "We've managed to prove that there is a higher existence Izzie." Izzie rolls her eyes and breaks the link with Kyle.

Kyle yells through the door. "Don't worry about it. I'll get the door. You just relax, or whatever."

Kyle opens the door without checking the peephole. In front of him are 4 men in full riot gear with automatic weapons pointed at him. Behind the men Agent Bosco smiles asw he steps forward with Michael beside him and gun positioned below his ribcage, directed at his heart.

"Oh." Kyle nods.

**Part Five:**

Max lounges on the bed channel surfing. "Maybe we should skip dining out. Just order some room service."

Liz unpacks a duffle. "No Max. First off, I get to pretend for the next two days our lives are mostly normal. That means I get to not live out of a backpack, I get to eat food in a nice reasonably priced setting with other seemingly normal people. I get to lounge by a pool that does not have a questionable maintenance policy, and I get to sleep in a bed not a van. Second, it's already passed 9:30; they are only offering cold cut sandwiches and chips. I'm not on Jared's diet Max. So get dressed. We're going to Olive Garden." Liz walks up to him smiling. "It will be fine. It has been fine for the last three months, maybe it's time we just…I don't know…allow for the possibility that we may get to settle down sooner rather than later." She wraps her arms around Max's neck and pulls him down into soft kiss.

Maria opens the door betweens the rooms and bounces inside flopping down on the bed. "Michael went to go get Iz and Kyle. I am so famished; I could eat like three bowls of my mothers' wheat germ surprise." She makes a face. "No, never mind. I'm not that hungry."

Max looks out the window scanning the parking lot. He notices a white delivery truck parked in front of the hotel, he watches for a few seconds then turns to the others. "I think we might have a problem." Liz and Maria rush over to the window. "What hotel takes delivery's through the front lobby?"

Liz and Maria exchange a quick look. "Maybe, it's just someone lost and they ran in to get directions." Liz looks at Max.

"Yeah, exactly. I mean concierges have to know the local ins and out like the back of their hand." Maria moves away from the window. The three stand quietly, none wanting to be the first to say it.

"I'll get Michael. You pack as much as possible in one minute. We are out of here." Max strides to the door opening it slightly.

"No Max, wait. What if you are over reacting? I mean it is possible this is has nothing to due with us." She looks over to the empty spot where Maria was standing. Maria comes out of her room holding a back pack and shoving a shirt and a sweater into it.

"Liz it is always about us. Always." She goes back into her room to finish packing.

Max shares a mournful look with Liz as he opens the door to the hallway.

"Wow new power Max?" Michael snarks as he walks past Michael into the room. "Seeing the future is going to make our life a lot easier." He smirks and turns back to Max.

"You are really not as funny as you think you are Michael." Isabel walks into the room.

"Where's Kyle?" Liz looks past them.

"Taking a shower." Michael answers quickly, but not before Isabel can open her mouth.

"Asleep." Iz looks over to Michael. "He was going to shower then sleep." She smiles and turns back to Liz. "I really need to talk to you. Do you have a minute?"

"No. We have to leave." Max sticks his head out the door and scans the hallway. "There is suspicious activity outside. It's not safe." He looks at Michael. "Maria is already packing."

"FBI? Council?" Isabel asks.

"He doesn't know. He looked outside and he saw a white truck in front of the hotel. This is odd so it's also a conspiracy and now we have to go." Liz crosses her arms.

"No I saw them too. A guy in a suit hopped out the back a few minutes ago." Michael shrugs.

"What? Why didn't get tell us?" Max's anger flares.

"Because we can take them, just chill." Isabel sits next to Michael.

"What?!" Max and Liz shout.

"Look Bro, me and Mikey have been talking and we think it is time we all just stop running. It's so weak. I mean it's just the council right?"She shrugs. "Humans." She sneers and give Liz a less than pleasant once over. Liz takes a step toward Max and Michael jumps up stopping her.

"Just hear us out." He pushes her to sit down on the bed.

"Michael!" Max fumes and moves toward Liz. Isabel puts up a shield. "Okay stop. Let's not lose our heads. Everyone just chill, we don't have time for this."

Michael puts his hands up surrendering. "You are right." He looks to Liz. "I'm sorry." He offers her his hand to help her up. "All the running is wearing on me-us all really." Isabel drops the shield.

"Max, they are right. We don't have to kill them but we can make it very hard for them to follow us." Liz looks at Max.

"Exactly!" Isabel smiles. "That is was we are talking about."

Max stares at Liz, quietly reading her face. He nods is consent. "Do we have a plan?" He looks at Michael, "Or are we flying by the seat of our pants hoping we can just heal the casualties?"

Michael rolls his eyes. "Yeah yeah. Come with me, we'll go get Kyle. Isabel can get the ladies to safety."

"No, I want to help." Liz steps forward to Max.

"That's great really, but the less of us in the cross hairs with the big baddies the better off we will be. Mmmkay? Awesome." Isabel pulls Liz with her into Maria's room.

Michael opens the door and looks at Max. "Well?"

**Part Seven:**

Michael, Isabel, and Kyle sit on the bed their hands bound by plastic ties. "What do we do? What do we do?" She whispers urgently to Michael.

"Nothing, not until we know that Max and the others got away."

"And if they didn't?" Isabel looks around at the men with guns. Agent Carter walks over to the group, he talks to Isabel. Michael and Kyle glare at him, but Isabel refuses to look at the man.

"I want to make sure no one gets hurt here tonight." He kneels in front of her. "I know you are scared. I understand that you do not trust us, but I am offering you a chance to help us end all this in the most peaceful way possible. If we go in there and Max, Liz and Maria resist someone can get hurt. Isabel, I've read your file. I know you are practical and see what the right thing to do is."

He touches her bound hands. Isabel takes advantage of the misstep and enters his mind. Agent Carter tries to break contact, but her power is too strong.

Carter opens his eyes and looks around the empty room. "What did you do to me?"

Isabel stands beside the bed her arms crossed. "Now you seem to know a lot about us." She squints her eyes and tilts her head studying him for a second. "I mean," she smiles, "You have access to our files at least. So I'm thinking, either you are stupid and will have hell to pay with you superior at the C8 for the rookie mistake, or you did that on purpose which means you actually have something to say to me that you didn't want anyone to hear." Agent Carter smirks impressed she caught on so fast.

"I guess you would have to be quick, constantly on your toes, on the run and all that. I don't have a message for you. I have a proposal. If you help me get Max. I will let Maria, Liz, and Kyle go. They don't have your powers, they are of little consequence to us."

"Do you think I'm going to fall for that?" Iz rolls her eyes. "God, can't you just…I don't know, take me to your leader?"

"Cute. Understand your situation here Ms. Evans. You have been caught. I know you are feeling angry and trapped, but your panic is not letting you see the bigger picture." Carter takes a step closer to her. Isabel jumps back.

"You want to experiment on us. You want to cut us open and see what we are made of. The bigger picture? Are you kidding me? You want my life to be a white room where you drug me, and bring various types of pain upon me. You want to control my every move like a lab rat. And when you run out of questions about me, you will murder me. I don't need to read your file to know what the C8, what a man like yourself Agent Carter, is all about." She walks up to him. "So understand this, I will fight to the death before I let you lock me away in that life." She finishes, a fiery anger present in her eyes. Agent Carter stares a moment before breaking eye contact.

"Isabel." When he looks up she is pulled back by an invisible force. "What happened?" Isabel grabs her shoulder , as a red hand print appears on her neck. "How is this happening? My agents are trying to break the link?" Tear well up in her eyes, she is struggling to breathe. "Listen to me okay? Isabel look at me, I can't promise you that you or Max, and Michael will ever be free again. What I am offering you is a life, a home, limited access to your family, and a job with the council. Break the li-"

Carter opens his eyes and finds himself on the floor, chaos is erupting in the room. "Wait!" he tries to sit up but his head is pounding, instead he turns to his side. Kyle, glares at him a large red welt over his eye and blood streaming down his nose. Michael is worse off and unconscious. Carter struggles to his feet. Agent Bosco helps him.

"Jake are you okay?" Carter nods and moves past Bosco. A large man has Isabel pinned to the floor his knee wedged on her neck as he binds her hands behind her back.

"Let her go." Agent Carter tells the agent. "Get the hell off her, Relis!" The agent looks over from Carter to Bosco.

"Did she get in your head?" Bosco looks at Isabel. "Restrain her, just ease up on the force Relis."

"No, we just reached an agreement." Carter pushes Relis away from Isabel and sits her upright. "Is that not correct Isabel?" Carter pushes a strand of her hair off her face. Isabel watches him for a second and then nods.

"Yes. I'll help you." She looks over to Kyle and Michael. "I'll help you."

________________________________________________

"You should have let me heal them." Isabel and Carter walk down the hall toward Max's room.

"That wouldn't be very wise on my part. Kyle could be reasoned with, he had a decent upbringing in a single parent home. The needle in _his_ moral compass isn't bent like Michaels."Carter looks over to Isabel. "Michael would try to escape and in his escape either he would kill one of my agents or he would be killed by one of them. I'm not wild about either of those scenarios." Isabel seems reluctant to concede the point, she is about to argue with him when she notices Max coming out of his room. Her breath catches when she sees Michael come out of the room after him.

"Oh God." She raises the hand and sends a orb of energy at Michael. "Max!" Michael slams into the door to room 226, stunned slightly. It takes a moment for Carter to realize what is going on, but his gun is already out and trained on Michael. "Max, the dupes are here! Run!" Isabel walks as Michael sends a beam of white light at her. His aim is off and she easily ducks the attack.

Max turns as the door to room 226 opens and Isabel smiles wickedly at him, a white glow in her left hand. She raises her hand and releases the white hot energy. Max gasps in pain as it feels like every nerve is his shoulder has been set on fire. In shock he watches as Isabel's features fade Lonnie's true image emerges. "This was way easier than I thought it was going to be." Max looks past Lonnie and sees Maria and Liz's bodies unmoving on the ground. Carter looks between Lonnie and Isabel confused. He points the gun at Lonnie, but she is faster than him.

"NO!" Isabel manages to put up a thin shield between Carter and Lonnie's attack. Carter falls to his knees, his face contorted in shock and excruciating pain. He struggles to raise the gun again and pulls the trigger. The sound of shot echoes up and down the hall but misses his target. Suddenly footsteps can be heard racing toward the chaos, shouts requesting back up precede the calvary.

Annoyed by the new arrivals Lonnie bends down and touches Max's chest just over her heart with her left hand. With her right hand she blasts the agents as they come around the corner. "I would love to take my time with this Max, but obviously the situation calls for a faster resolution." Rath jumps up sending attack after attack at the men.

Isabel kneels next to Agent Carter as she strengthens her shield, protecting herself and the agents from the attacks. The agents hesitate a brief second before turning their weapons away from her and back to Rath and Lonnie. Agent Bosco crouches beside her. "What the hell is going on Evans?" She fires a shot at Rath, it grazes his arm. The attacks stop briefly as Rath recovers. Isabel bends and concentrates on healing Carter. "I'm trying to save your guy." She grits her teeth.

She can feel the weakened heart slowing, her mind flashes on moments in Carters life, the speech he gave as valedictorian, a keg party in college, when he was six and stole a kiss from his neighbor, the feeling of going down that first fall of a roller coaster, the say he graduated from the academy, his son dying and his wife leaving him, of the moment he met Isabel Evans in person. A sharp stinging sensation sprays across her face and chest. Her eyes opens and she notices the bodies to three agents collapsed, blood on the walls and soaking into the carpet. Agent Bosco leans on against a wall, having retreated around the corner, she cradles her bloodied arm. There is a large gash on her upper arm as if a small explosion had occurred on the inside of her arm. Isabel reluctantly removes her hands from Agent Carter, she makes to move over to Agent Bosco.

"No, I'm fine. Just stop that guy." Bosco manages before Isabel is hit dead on with a blast from Michael. She falls back wailing as the pain courses through her body. She arches her back off the ground as her nerves endings are set ablaze. Rath walks over, a smirk playing on his lips. "This has just got to suck for you Evans." His shoulder shakes as laughter erupts from him. His eyes are full of rage, hate, and arrogance.

Lonnie smiles and turns to Max, who is fading in and out of consciousness. "Poor Max couldn't save anyone he cares about today." She smiles and prepares for the death strike. "Well at least you won't have to live with that." A green shot of electricity hits Lonnie square in the back, it's not enough to harm her but she is stunned. She turned to see Liz, bloodied and fierce.

"That is not possible." Lonnie stands, she flicks her hand to send an orb at Liz but the effect is weak and barely knocks Liz off balance. Rath watches the exchange confused.

"Stop toying we her Lonnie! We don't have time for that." Rath shouts at her.

The shock on Lonnie's face as the anger mixes with the rising panic. "She did something to me! My powers…what did you do to me?" Liz raises her hand again, Rath blast the door frame sending splinters of wood every where. Liz stands unharmed the shield close around her form. Lonnie returns to Max and tries to finish the job. She is unable to release the amount of energy she needs and slams his head against the wall in frustration. Liz sends another blast of energy at Lonnie but Rath, counters quickly. Rath steps infront of Liz as he moves to help Lonnie up. Liz tries to shock him, but she's already weak from Lonnie's attack and can't hold the energy flow. She jumps from her spot in the door way and punches Rath in the nose, a small spark of her powers adds an additional sting. She kicks his knee in and as he falls on his knees in front of her she grabs his throat. Isabel slowly moves beside Liz.

"Take my energy Liz." Isabel places her hand on Liz's shoulder. Max watches in horror.

"No, stop it." He pushes himself up. "Liz!" He shouts but her rage is roaring through her body. Max steps between Liz and Isabel breaking the link between them. "LIZ! He touches her shoulder.

"I'm doing this Max. You can't tell me they don't deserve this." Rath gasp's as she begins to flood him with energy, the hallway is suddenly filled with Rath's screams.

Max grasps Lizs shoulder and Rath's and pulls energy from both, as his energy is restored the wounds on his head and body heal. "Let go Liz."

The energy drains from her but she refuses to given in, she glares angrily at Max. Suddenly from the room behind them Maria cries out in pain as she comes to, her arm at an unnatural angel. The sound of her friend in pain distracts her long enough for Lonnie to pull the fire alarm, Lonnie's grabs Rath free and runs toward the emergency exit. Liz makes to follow them, but Max holds her back. "Let me go Max!" She punches him in the arm, but he holds tight.

"Liz we need to find Michael and Kyle and get out of here! We have to heal who we can before we leave. Focus on what needs to be done." He points to room 226.

Isabel returns to Agent Bosco, she is pale from the blood loss. "Where are Kyle and Michael?" Bosco looks up at Isabel and swallows.

"They were moved after you left. We have a truck outside." Agent Bosco reaches for her radio Isabel stops her.

"Wait." Isabel kneels next to her and places her hands on the wound. She uses the last of her energy to heal Bosco. She looks over to Carter. "He should make it, I would do more but…" she trails off. "Agent Bosco, I need you to free Michael and Kyle. We don't have the energy to heal our friend. Please help us." Bosco looks over to Carter and then back to Isabel and nods.

_____________________________________________

Outside the others watch as Gabby barks orders at the remaining agents, the agents scatter quickly to follow her orders. Bosco opens the truck doors and motions for Kyle and Michael. "Quickly." Max carries Maria toward the van. Isabel and Liz follow alert for any surprise attacks.

"I don't understand." Kyle says as he helps Michael off the back of the truck. The bleeding from the gash on Michaels head has stopped, but the bump has doubled in size. Isabel runs over to them.

"Let's go." She pushes Michael and Kyle toward the VW van. Before following she turns and gives Bosco a piece of paper. "When Carter wakes up give this to him. It should help him find us." Bosco takes the piece of paper.

"You trust me enough for this?" she puts the paper in her pocket without looking at it.

"I trust him." Isabel says remembering the flashes she saw while healing him, without another word she runs over to the van and jumps in the back slamming the door shut. Max pulls out of the lot and speeds away into the night. Bosco watches until the tail lights fade. She pulls out her cell phone and dials, "I need to speak to Agent Charles Brenton." She turns toward the hotel and comes face to face with Rath, murder in his eyes. A bright light surges across the parking lot as the ambulance sirens scream louder as they near the hotel.


	4. Chapter 4

Last I Checked, I Was Still On Top

Part One

Jim shuts off the video; they've watched it three times already. Amy puts her head between her knees. "I think I'm going to be sick." She takes a deep breath and holds it a second before slowly letting it out. Diane gently rubs small circle on her back. "They're just kids--_our_ kids, and they are doing full on battle at Holiday Inns now? On the lamb from covert agencies, getting married, and now there are evil doppelgangers or illusionists or whatever the hell is going on!" Amy struggles to calm her self, she sits upright again. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to lose it. It's all just…" She trails off as she swallows the lump in her throat. "I feel like I woke up in the Sci-fi channel. It's just really too much." Diane puts her arm over Amy's shoulder gently hugging her.

"Jim, you brought Brenton to us, you know he wants us to help him capture Isabel and everyone else." Jesse looks Jim in the eye. "Do you trust him?" there is a slight edge to Jesse's voice. Jim looks around at his friends, these people he considers family. He knew there was only one answer to give, and that he had committed himself to this answer the moment he agreed to bring Brenton to the Crash Down.

"Yes." Jim scratches his chin and sighs. "I have my concerns about what this will mean for our kids, their future, and their safety. I know this is a huge risk. Almost too big, but it _is _all we have." He looks away his face unable to mask his pain, his eyes fill with tears. A long silent moment passes as each parent contemplates what this decision will mean. Charlie walks back into the room, as he surveys the others, as sparks of sadness are set off inside him, he clenches his fists at his side, and pushing his emotions aside he clears his throat.

"Now that you've seen the video, you have a sliver of understanding as to the danger your children are in." Charlie turns to Jesse. "From the reports I've read your wife had agreed to this deal prior to the attack. I know this is not easy, and it feels like it is an impossible decision, but Isabel had agreed to it because she recognized this is her chance for some semblance of a normal life." He looks back to the others. "The fact is this, the success of this plan does not rest in your participation of it. My organization will continue to track them until we succeed, but we do admit we will save time and possibly lives with your assistance. Now the choice is for each of you to make, but I need your answers now."

"What do you want to do to them?" Jeff takes a step forward, turning slightly to avoid his wife's eyes.

Charlie sighs and sits down, he knew they would ask, of course this question would be asked. He could give them answers for not a whole lot when it came down to it. He crosses his legs and leans back in his seat. "That information has not been cleared for your knowledge." He holds up a hand to stop the onslaught of protests. "Folks, this is not going to be a situation where everyone comes home and it all ends happily ever after. This is more "as good as it gets" than anything else. The moment their powers became known, 'normal' was no longer an option for them. I cannot tell you what will happen, where they will be held, or when you will be able to see them exactly. I can, however make you two promises. The first, is simple, we are offering them a life. They will have to live outside of society in a controlled environment, for as long as we see fit. But you will get to see them eventually, and have contact with them, which is more than you can say you have now. Correct?" He stands and turns to Jim. "The second," He turns back to the others. "They are being hunted, whatever it is hunting them will kill to get them. We want them safe, and you can make it so." He clasps his hands before him. "Now, what do you decide?"

"If you harm one hair on my daughter's head, nowhere in the entire world will be safe for you." Amy stands tall, her eyes fierce and her jaw clenched tight. "You give me your word that you make sure they are not harmed."

Charlie rubs his fingers together, the sparks of emotions and stress present. "I give you my word."

"We have no way of contacting them." Philip steps forward. "They didn't want us in anymore danger so we have no way of contact them. How are we supposed to get them to come home?"

"No one has any way what-so-ever of contacting them?" all the parents shake their head. Charlie locks eyes with Jesse. "The faster we locate them, the faster they are safe from those that seek them out to harm them." Jesse glares as he shifts his weight from one foot to the other. Philip slowly turns to face Jesse.

"You have a way of contacting them?" Philip asks, though his tone is even, the look in eyes cuts at Jesse. There was no way around this, he had betrayed them. Jesse nods.

PART TWO

Isabel sits across from Kyle, both have their eyes closed. Max, Maria, Michael, and Liz stand nearby watching them. Kyle starts to laugh, Isabel frowns. "Stop it Kyle!" Kyle tries to control him self, falls over to his side laughing.

"I'm sorry it feels so weird." He scratches his head, he pushes himself up again. Isabel glares at him. "I'm so sorry. It's like being tickled everything tingles." He wipes tears from his eyes. "I mean, just do it with your hand! Why get all Jedi mind trick with the whole thing?" He is grinning like a fool. Liz points to the back of Kyle's head. Michael cranes his neck for a better look, a large smile spreads over his face. Kyle turns to them. "What?" Isabel gasps.

"It worked!" Her eyes light up and she clasps her hands together.

"Dude you look like a skunk." Michael smirks.

Kyle gets up and looks in the mirror, he grins and turns back to Isabel. "Were you thinking skunk?" He laughs and gives her a high five; she laces her fingers through his and he pulls her up to him. They come face to face, his eyes lock with her briefly, the tingly effect from her experiment spreading through his body.

She shakes her head. "No I wanted to do pink highlights, but for a third try it's not so bad." She pulls Kyle to the window. The light hits the streak of white hair; she runs her fingers through it. "No roots showing, that's good." She leans closer for a better look. Kyle suddenly steps back; Isabel tilts her head as she looks at him quizzically.

"What?" she laughs.

"I don't know. What?" he puts his hands in his pockets and turns to the others. "You can fix this right?

Max frowns, worried about the results. They all had been working with varying degrees of success and some memorable failures in strengthening their powers. Three months after they left Roswell, the gang had stopped in Lake Ariel, PA. On their second night, while the others had been roasting marshmallows over a roaring campfire, Isabel and Kyle had retreated closer to the lake. Isabel would link with Kyle to help him learn to hone his powers. As it was explained to Max, once the link was established if they both relaxed enough the link was so intense it consumed their senses, it felt like an explosion of energy through ever inch of them. Isabel learned to control it first, and she was then able to actively control Kyle's memories, she could view his entire life's memories as though they were catalogued. The initial benefits of the link were one sided, Isabel was buzzing with power and Kyle was completely depleted. By the fifth attempt they had all worked out a way to keep the balance of energy but still allowing for the boost to powers. By the time trouble found them in Lake Ariel, Isabel has begun to show signs of a new power. She could move the life force from one living creature to another. A month after they had escaped Lake Ariel, Isabel realized she could heal by giving her energy away, but her powers would be tapped for days. This too was only a temporary limit she was moving past, if the occurrences at Twin Peaks were any indication. So far the added power boost had been the only benefit the others had got from these sessions. The range Liz could get with her power tripled, Michael could shift much faster and with less difficulty, the strength of his powers still seemed more tied to his emotions however. As for Max, he didn't feel stronger, he felt on edge afterward, like he had drank a three Red Bulls and a gallon of black coffee. If he had to admit it to himself, he was concerned that Isabel's power had advanced while his power had not. Now she could manipulate matter by a single thought. Sure it was a line of gray hair on Kyle, but it was still more than he could do. If he had to admit it, he really didn't like it at all.

"Our powers are supposed to evolve naturally. Maybe we should focus on strengthening what we have instead of finding our limits. This seems like you are forcing it. What I mean to say is that to get it before your ready, you can't guarantee you can control it. Which makes it dangerous to those around it. Isabel has developed two powers since she began this mediation experiment." Max looks at Kyle. "What about you?"

Kyle lost in thought and sensation of the experiment tapering off, gazes into the dark fire place.

"Kyle?" Max waves his hand in front of his face. Kyle snaps out of his thoughts, his face flushes.

"Huh?" Kyle glances over to Isabel quickly. "Maybe. I think I'm starting to develop, well maybe it's not exactly…" He looks over to Isabel for help.

"He can _sometimes_ slip ideas into peoples minds' when they are sleep. It seems to work for very small amounts of time, and he can't do it again for about a week…right?" She looks back at Kyle.

"Yeah. But at first thought, it was like a month between them." Kyle leans on the arm of the sofa, he avoids looking at Max.

Max eyes him skeptically. "Are you saying you can implant thoughts? That you've already—" Max freezes before he can finish, his eyes get wide at the thought that occurs to him. "You've done it to one of us. That's how you can be sure it has worked. Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?" Max turns to Iz. "You of all people should remember how dangerous it is to mess with someone's mind."

"Max." Liz puts her hand in his put he pulls it away and points at Kyle. "Why did you not come to me about this?"

Isabel stands and moving between Kyle and Max, her eyes reflecting defiance. "I told him not to tell you, because at first we though that maybe everything was just a coincidence and— but when we realized it wasn't, well his power is still very weak Max. Secondly, I knew you would tell us to hold back, to maybe to even stop trying. We are running for our lives Max, any advantage we can get on the Dupes and Nicholas, everything that is coming after us, the better." She turns to leave, hesitates and looks back at her. Her voice is heavy with emotion. "You decided not to trust the council and we went along with you, as we always do. We don't have to agree with you about everything Max. We can have our own minds." she stops talking and takes a deep breath. This was beginning to get out of hand, and she wasn't looking for a fight. "If the person with the implanted thought is able to resist it for 2 hours after he wakes, the thought vanishes. It's only if…" Her eyes dart nervously to Michael, then back to Max.

"Only if what?" Max grits his jaw clenched.

"If the person wakes up, and the suggestion pops into their head and they internally commit to that idea. It apparently can consume them a bit. Might make them a bit crazy until they complete what they've mentally committed to do."

Everyone stares in shock at this revelation. Maria suddenly clasps her hands over her mouth. She turns to Michael. "Banana and peanut butter chip pancakes with pecan syrup and shredded cheddar cheese with two ketchup packets. You threw such a fit when Max didn't stop at the IHOP. He had to go back just to shut you up!" Her eyes light up and she shakes her head. "Kyle did that?" Iz nods, failing to hide the smile.

"Dude, you're dead." Michael stands and Kyle puts his hands up. "I'm not your monkey."

"It is not my fault you are the most susceptible to the power." Isabel pushes Michael back.

"Come on it was harmless." Maria pulls Michael over to her.

"I should have been told." Max crosses his arms.

"No, _I_ should have been told." Michael scowls at Kyle.

"Max this benefits us." Liz turns him to face her. "They didn't do anything wrong." Max looks around the room, hoping to find an ally, finding none he turns and leaves the room. Liz sighs and follows him.

"He's not wrong Isabel." Michael crosses his arms.

"I know, but we're not wrong either." Isabel sighs and sits back down. "I know he's angry I made that deal in Twin Falls." Isabel swallows the lump in her throat. "But would any of you have done different?"

PART THREE

Lonnie leans against the windshield of the car, closing her eyes and soaking up the sun. Rath is on pay phone getting yelled at. "I understand what you have said, but little man, you need to shut up and hear the words coming out of my mouth. Max and the others are off the grid. We have can't find them."

"You have been given one task that you have failed at multiple times. I am astounded by your stupidity. How you have managed to survive as long as you have speaks more to human stupidity than—you are an epic failure Rath. Even your name is stupid." The line goes silent for a brief moment. When the voice returns there is an icy tone, tipped with cold danger. "Put Valandra on the phone now."

Rath drops the receiver and storms over to Lonnie. "The king midget wants you." He grits his teeth. "I swear when I see Nicholas again I am going to remind him who exactly he is dealing with." Rath drops his hand against the hood of the car, there is a sizzling sound and when he pulls his hand back the red paint has burnt away. Lonnie sits up and pulls him close to her.

"Let me handle him from now on. Like I said before, he has issues only a woman of my talents can manage." She grins and slides off the hood. She picks up the phone and holds it to her ear. Her voice is sweet and light. "Nicholas, I'm sorry for letting Rath make the call on that last one. Seriously we have tried every possible way of getting to them."

"I don't care how you are doing what was ordered of you. I care that you fail. I care that you don't seem to worry about the consequences of those failures. Kivar has plans Valandra, and you and your little assistant are dangerously close to disturbing those plans. The trail you two leave behind is laughable. I'm surprised the Council hasn't eliminated you both yet themselves." The venom in his voice sends a chill up her spine.

"I understand, Nicky, and I have a plan. It is guaranteed to bring unending pain to Max and his followers." She smiles a little more sure of herself.

"You don't even know where they are. I think it's time I get involved in this myself."


	5. Chapter 5

Let's Make a Deal

**PART ONE**

"I can't believe you had to come up with such a busted combination of food. Do you know what that did to me? Emotionally damaged, dude." Michael pours a couple dashes of Tabasco on his chocolate chip cookie shoving it into his mouth whole.

"We had to be sure it wasn't something you would normally get." Kyle hands Maria the jar of spaghetti sauce he just opened. Liz had ordered them into the kitchen to start dinner while she had taken the task of talking Max down.

"It's just so crazy the way Max is acting right now, he's always been the bossy pushy sort, but I dunno, he just seems really out of sorts." Maria adds the sauce to the browned ground beef, the aroma fills the kitchen. "Yum." She turns back to the others. "I think Isabel was right in what she did at Twin Falls. Personally I—"

Michael jumps in interrupting her and waving her off. "You don't really have a say. They might poke you around a bit, but you're off the hook once they see you're just a total norm." Maria stares dumbfounded at Michael, he shrugs it off. "The truth hurts babe."

Maria was furious, how dare Michael try to pull this crap. She has just as much on the line as they do. So she doesn't have powers, whoop-dee-doo. She knew secrets and…stuff. Maria shakes her head and pulls her apron off throwing it at Michael before stalking out of the kitchen. "You're such an ass."

"Oh come on Maria! I didn't do anything wrong this time. Are you kidding me?" Michael exchanges a bewildered look with Kyle before he tosses him the apron and quickly follows after her.

"No, really, go work out your stuff. I got this." Kyle looks around the empty kitchen. "It's all good." he sighs, and stirs the bubbling pot of sauce.

**PART TWO**

"Jesse, why didn't you tell us? You know what we have been going through! How could you just sit by and watch us losing our minds and not do something?" Diane screams at him, her face red with anger. Amy gently pulls Diane back to the couch.

"I've said I'm sorry, but it's not like they have a cell phone that I didn't give you the number to." Jesse had been shouted at for the last twenty-five minutes. He was over it now. "My _wife_ asked me to keep this quite so that is what I did. That's how she wanted it, so that's how it was. You think I wanted it this way?" He looks around the room and sees that there's no use fighting about this, they had something bigger to discuss. "If she contacts me, then I will tell her what was said. If we all agree she should know about it that is."

"What choice do we have? There are evil aliens out there trying to kill them. We have to do something." Jeff was prepared to do anything to bring his daughter home. Liz being gone had taken its toll on him and his marriage. He wasn't sure how much more either of them could take.

Amy shakes her head confused. "I'm playing devil's advocate, but what if we are putting them in more danger?"

"What do you mean, Amy?" Jeff asks her, weary she's about to take them on some wild tangent about personal journeys and chakras and whatever nonsense she normally would pull out. It was a Herculean feat not to roll his eyes when she spoke.

"I mean for the first time since this whole mess began we finally have something we can do." She hesitates not wanting to upset Diane any further but presses on, "And maybe we need to step back and consider the fact that the best thing to do is not give our kids to someone who going to lock them up forever and do heaven knows what to them." She swallows the lump of emotion at the thought of never seeing her daughter again. "As parents we fix things, it's what we do. But what if we're doing this, not because it's the best thing for them, but because it's the only thing we can do right now?"

The group sits quietly thinking about this, each parent trying to decide if they were doing what was right for their child or if they were about to do something that was irrational for the sake of doing _something._

Jim clears his throat, "I, well I have faith in Max and the others. They are smart kids, and I believe they are capable of taking care of themselves. Now, I don't know why Isabel made a deal with these people, but the way I figure it is that if they had intended to follow through on their surrender they've had plenty of time since they left Twin Falls to do so." He picks up his hat, his fingers playing on the brim. "I think Amy is right. Taking them from one unknown danger and turning them into another doesn't really sit well with me."

"So in the mean time what do we do?" Jeff asks. He had let for the briefest moment the idea of Liz coming home get to him. He couldn't help being angry that it was now being taken away.

"What we've done since this all started." Nancy sighs and shrugs looking at the others. "We wait."

"If we're in agreement, I'll call Charlie and let him know what our answer is."

**Part Three**

"Where'd the twerp say he was gonna go?" Rafe was bitter and there was just no way around it. Not only had he had failed to prove that was capable kicking ass and taking names, but Valandra was acting like he was her lap dog. Plus he had not gotten his ass kicked twice now. "I swear to god V, if we don't settle this mess with Max and his crew I'm going to tear up a trail to Ros-hell and I'm going to kill everyone that ever crossed paths with them. I swear."

Valandra was staring out the window as they sped through yet another crummy little town. Tuning out Rafe was second nature to her after all the miles behind them. Currently she was lost in thought, thinking about how much she missed the lights of New York. The pulsing of life in the city danced on the edge of her memory, slipping away from her when she tried to focus on it to hard. She hated this cross country zigzag road trip nonsense. And she had come to realize how much of a pig Rafe was.

Thankfully they changed cars every couple of days, but by then the ride was so littered with wrappers and empty containers every molecule of her being screamed for a shower. She wasn't sure how much more she could take. Rafe snapping his fingers in front of her face jolted her out of her thoughts.

"What?" she slaps his hand away from her face. "WHAT?"

"Did you hear what I said?" Rafe smacks his lips and pulls over.

"No. I was ignoring you. Like I have been ignoring you for the last two hundred miles." She snarked and turned to look back out the window. Rafe yanks the steering wheel roughly and comes to an abrupt stop on the side of the road.

"Let's clear something up princess. I am over your issues and attitude and I am tired of taking the fall anything something goes wrong."

"Stop making mistakes and screwing everything up and then maybe, YOU WON'T HAVE TO!" she punches the dashboard. "Why is it so hard for you to just follow a plan? Huh?"

"What are you talking about? How was I supposed to know that the Parker chick had powers? I'm an extraterrestrial. I do not have extrasensory perception."

Valandra stares at him both angry and stunned that he knows what ESP was. "Uh, Okay. I didn't say you were, but I'm sure that even if you could see the future you would find a way to screw it all up." She crosses her arms defiantly and gives him a smug look. Rafe for his part didn't reach across and choke her, though he was having very vivid images of doing just that flashing across his mind. Instead he took a deep breath and said, "I'm through chasing these losers across the map. We're going to make them come to us."

"Really genius? How do you propose to accomplish that task? Huh Wile E. Coyote? Huh?" she rolls her eyes in disgust.

"Well, you impossible mega-bitch, for starter we're going back to Roswell, and once we get there I'm going to kill anyone with ties to them until Max comes begging for a fight. Does that plan work for you Princess?" Rafe puts the car back into drive and peels out back onto the road.

Part Four

Nicholas had experienced the same epiphany after his call with Rafe and Valandra and was on his way to Roswell. He was currently sitting comfortably in a the back of a rented town car drinking a chilled bottle of water and calculating the odds that Rafe would save him the trouble and get himself killed. It irritated him that lately he was consumed with such negative feelings. He wasn't exactly a chirper type but right now he was just consumed with so much negativity it was exhausting. All he could think about was that how much hated the desert. And how much he hated Rafe, He begrudgingly admitted to himself he didn't mind Valandra so much, but the fact the Rafe's failure was the reason he was on the way to New Mexico was festering in his mind and had him sitting deathly quite while a rage simmered just below the surface. At least his driver had the good sense to keep to himself, although Levi thought the kid was creepy, there was certainly something threatening about him as well.

Part Five

Isabel enters the kitchen as the smoke alarm screams in the background. "Kyle! What's burning?" She covers her mouth and nose, watching as the smoke billows from a blackened pan on the stove. Kyle is standing at the back door using a cookie sheet trying to wave the smoke out.

"Everything! Liz went after Max, and then Michael said something stupid and Maria bolted and he went chasing her and I got stuck with cooking." He drops the cookie sheet on the counter and grabs the phone. "But I have it under control. I'm going to order pizza."

"Yes because Liz's declaration of home cooking totally had the 'Except in cases where Kyle ruins dinner' clause. Look if you want I can help. I'm sure there has to be something salvageable." She peers into the pots and pans. "Or not. What was in here?"

Kyle replaces the phone and looks into the burnt pot. "Water."

Isabel rolls her eyes. "So basically, we lost the security deposit." She opens the fridge, "Might as well toss those pans. Uh, start a fresh pot of water boiling and then grab the potato peeler. You peel, I'll chop." She grabs a few items and moves them to the counter

"Don't trust me with a knife?" Kyle teases and begins peeling the potatoes with a flourish before settling into a normal pace.

"No, not really." She laughs and beings clearing the pots from the stove.

A few minutes pass as they work together preparing the meal. Kyle notices that Isabel keeps almost saying something before deciding not to. "Since when do you have trouble saying what's on your mind, Iz?"

She smirks and gives a self conscious shrug. "Well we haven't really had a chance to talk about Twin Falls. Everyone else has weighed in but not you."

"I don't think it really matters what I think. It's the past. It's over with. We can't change it, so let's just move on." Kyle gives her a wary side glance.

Isabel stop chopping and sets the knife down, she faces him. "But it does matter. To me. I-I," she takes a steadying breath and continues, "What you think Kyle, it matters. Since this all began…well we've become close. As friends. Right? So it matters to me Kyle."

Kyle sighs and tosses the peeler and potato down. "Don't do that. Don't use _this_ stupid thing you did there as a way to talk about this _other_ thing going on between us Isabel." He turns to face her. "You wanna talk about Twin Falls. No, I can't say I would have made the same choice as you. I don't even understand why you made the choice you did."

"Kyle I explained what Carter said-." Kyle holds up a hand stopping her.

"I know you Isabel Evans, and you wouldn't have put any of us in their hands unless you truly did trust this guy. So in the end I'm okay with what you did." Kyle smiles sweetly and gives her a slight shrug.

"Then why are you suddenly keeping me at arms length? Why are you mad at me?" Isabel asks.

Kyle tries to turn away, but Izzie pulls him back to her, taking his hands in hers. They stay like that quietly for a few moments. Kyle clears his throat. "Something is happening between us right? It's not just in my head?"

"No." Isabel smiles sadly. "It's not in your head." Kyle squeezes her hands in his and relaxes. He moves to close the space between them, but she steps back and pulls her hands away. "I'm married." She shakes her head and turns from him.

Her shoulders fall and she grabs the counter holding on tightly, as if trying to hold everything together by sheer will. She shakes her head, trying to clear the emotion and struggles to swallow back the tears and emotion. "I'm sorry. I saw it happening and I should have stopped it but…I couldn't. I didn't. I'm so sorry Kyle." Isabel shakes as a sob escapes her lips. Kyle turns her to face him and gently wipes her tears away.

"Hey come on, shhh." He holds her to him letting her cry and gently swaying. "Listen to me for just a second Izzie, you didn't betray anyone. I know you, and as emo as your being right now, you didn't do anything wrong. Being alone and so damn abstinent sucks and it mess with our minds. It's nothing. Hell for all we know, it could just be a side effect of the training and sharing of powers. So then it's just really nothing." He smiles in a way that she knows he is lying about this being no big deal. Here heart breaks.

"Kyle, you're important to me." Isabel pulls away from him.

"Of course. Friends are important in times of …whatever we'll call this part of our lives."

"Shut up. Just shut up Kyle." Isabel takes a breath as she closes the space between them. Kyle could feel his pulse quicken as her finger tips glided along the side of his neck. He closed his eyes and lowered his head. Their lips touch just barely.

"NO FREAKING WAY!" Maria shouted from the entryway.


End file.
